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Global Vision Week Inspires Students to Go to the Nations

Global service is a way of life at Life Pacific led by Dr. Karen Tremper, a field worker with 20 years experience and a passion to train a new generation to go to the nations.

Karen Tremper, Ph.D. loves to see students go to the nations. As director of Life Pacific’s Global Life department, she knows each time they go, they help support the influence of the Church in places where the ways of the Lord no longer flourish.

She credits a recent campus tradition held each fall called, “Global Vision Week,” with inspiring students to travel, serve, and study in cross-cultural settings.

“Last year, Global Vision Week inspired 22 percent of our campus population to participate in cross-cultural trips at home and away,” Karen says. Already this year, a student-led trip to Mexico and a staff-led team serving closer to home with “Love Your City – L.A.” gave five percent of our students the opportunity to serve cross-culturally through these weekend experiences.

Global Vision Week includes a ministry fair offering global opportunities that students can join on a short-term or long-term basis. LPC and Global Life host a fall meeting of the Foursquare Missions International (FMI) missions committee and area missionaries that includes one-on-one time with students during lunch in the Café. Additional follow up conversations offer students extended time to chat with FMI staff about how to serve globally with The Foursquare Church after graduation.

“Last year, Global Vision Week inspired 22 percent of our campus population to participate in cross-cultural trips at home and away,” Karen says. Already this year, a student-led trip to Mexico and a staff-led team serving closer to home with “Love Your City – L.A.” gave five percent of our students the opportunity to serve cross-culturally through these weekend experiences.

Karen and a student leader recently had lunch with an area pastor and a district supervisor who described a need for an intern to deploy after graduation to Haiti. The synergy of the conversation produced names of three students with an expressed call of God to Haiti. “It’s exciting to see students fall in love with a people and place while serving short-term, especially when they return long-term after graduation serving globally through our Foursquare family network,” Karen says.

Audrey Doumen, FMI deployment coordinator, visits our San Dimas campus on a regular basis meeting with students who hope to become FMI apprentices. When she talks with students, the most pressing question is, “What do I need to do to deploy with FMI after graduation?” Following Audrey’s advice, these students will participate in FMI phase-one training early next year that will prepare them to answer God’s call and deploy in a global context through the apprenticeship program.

Karen takes delight in helping nudge these students to serve around the globe. “God has called me to teach and train a generation who will finish the work of the gospel,” Karen says. “It’s why I get up each day. I’m living a dream, every day of my life preparing this generation to usher in the coming of our King.”

She points to one LPC student who served on short-term teams and studied abroad for a season. When she returned home, she spoke with her pastor about the call of God she sensed to serve long term in a part of Europe that we cannot name due to security concerns. After much deliberation and prayer, the student is pursuing a partnership with another young woman who has served with FMI in the same area for a few years. The pair bonded over a mutual love of worshipping Jesus and together they plan to expand the reach of the gospel among unreached people groups.

During this year’s Global Vision Week, FMI Area Missionary to Europe Jeff Roper spoke during chapel. He spoke with passion about God’s heart for the nations. “You must go,” he implored. “We need people who are willing to work, to put your hand to the plow while the harvest is ripe.”

Quoting William Carey, the father of modern day missions, Jeff challenged the students, “Expect great things of God. Attempt great things for God.”

Talk like this fires up lifelong global workers like Karen Tremper who with her husband spent 20 years working on an unwritten language. “Now, God has retooled me to reach whatever generation He may send my way,” Karen says. “The current generation is incredibly teachable and with a little guidance, they dig into the Bible to see what matters to the heart of God.”

Then, they go, Karen says. They know no limitations. They are very comfortable living with intercultural friendships. That kind of openness is a big plus for Global Life students at LPC.

Global Vision Week at Life Pacific is more than an event to rally students toward a cause. It is the beginning of a lifetime focus of global service. Karen celebrates the lessons learned by multiethnic student teams who live and learn together in places like Chicago, Detroit, and the ends of the earth. Likewise, she rejoices about global life success stories of graduates now serving in Costa Rica, Japan, and places we never thought we could go.

As Jeff Roper charged students during Global Vision Week, “You cannot remain in your seat. You must go!” Karen Tremper is there to teach and train this generation of students who respond to that charge and hopes that every student at Life Pacific will catch the vision and answer the call of God to reach out to others through global service.

Are you interested in learning more about how to get involved with Global Life or Foursquare missions?